
The Moment of 'Psycho'
How Alfred Hitchcock Taught America to Love Murder
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Narrated by:
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Jeff Woodman
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By:
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David Thomson
About this listen
It was made like a television movie, and completed in less than three months. It killed off its star in 40 minutes. There was no happy ending. And it offered the most violent scene to that date in American film, punctuated by shrieking strings that seared the national consciousness. Nothing like Psycho had existed before, and the movie industry, even America itself, would never be the same.
In The Moment of Psycho, film critic David Thomson situates Psycho in Alfred Hitchcock's career, recreating the mood and time when the seminal film erupted onto film screens worldwide. Thomson shows that Psycho was not just a sensation in film - it altered the very nature of our desires. Sex, violence, and horror took on new life. Psycho, all of a sudden, represented all America wanted from a film and, as Thomson brilliantly demonstrates, still does.
©2009 David Thomson (P)2009 Audible, Inc.Listeners also enjoyed...
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Critic reviews
What listeners say about The Moment of 'Psycho'
Average customer ratingsReviews - Please select the tabs below to change the source of reviews.
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Overall
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Performance
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Story
- James M. Patton
- 07-19-17
Read "Alfred Hitchcock & The Making of Psycho"
Where does The Moment of 'Psycho' rank among all the audiobooks you’ve listened to so far?
I have read Stephen Rebello's "Alfred Hitchcock & The Making of Psycho" and it is a superior work to "The Moment of Psycho". Both are a good read if you are a big Psycho/Hitchcock fan, but from narration to actual story told, Rebello's is the one to read. May not seem the nicest thing to say in a review, but seeing as I depend on other's reviews to choose my books, I prefer candor.
What did you like best about this story?
It did have a sense of wit to the telling and did have some anecdotes regarding the making.
Which scene was your favorite?
Nothing jumps out... so to speak.
Did you have an extreme reaction to this book? Did it make you laugh or cry?
No.
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Overall
- Nick Palmer
- 12-18-09
Engaging and insightful
Interesting analysis of Psycho, that not only goes into great detail about the specifics of the film, but also the impact it had of filmmaking more broadly. The narration is strong and engaging. Listened to the full 3.5 hours in one sitting and was never bored (though it does meander near the end... sort of like Psycho.)
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4 people found this helpful
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Overall
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Performance
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Story
- Carrie
- 12-12-11
This is a glorified plot summary
My wife and I are big fans of Psycho, and we couldn't make it through this, even as short as it is. Imagine someone telling you, scene by scene, what happens in the movie, peppering in some subjective, usually obvious observations. It's baffling this got such good press reviews.
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